Nearly 46% of workers say they would accept a narrower provider network in exchange for higher pay, and 72% believe employers should return all plan savings to workers. A national survey finds employees considerably more willing to trade network breadth than most benefit designs assume.

Source: Health Affairs Scholar, "Employee preferences in health plan design," June 19, 2026.

The fees employers pay third-party administrators are largely invisible to employees. Interviews with industry stakeholders document shared-savings cuts on out-of-network claims, retained network discounts and cross-plan offsetting — charges sitting beneath the administrative fee employers believe they are paying.

Source: Health Affairs Scholar, "Paying in the Dark," July 23, 2026.

Employers project a median 9.2% healthcare cost increase for 2027, trimmed to 8% only after plan design changes. Cancer is now the number one cost driver for 70% of employers, up from 58% a year ago.

Source: Business Group on Health. 2027 Employer Healthcare Strategy Survey.

An employer-based reference pricing program paying hospitals roughly 140% of Medicare saved about $417 million a year — 56.5% of what those employers would otherwise have spent. Across 188,000 claims at 2,684 hospitals, outpatient facility prices ran 162 percentage points below what other commercial payers paid.

Source: Health Affairs Scholar, July 2026

Eight forces are converging on healthcare costs in 2026, from hospital consolidation and AI-driven coding intensity to Medicaid changes that begin reshaping the market in 2027. This independent chart collection lays out the data behind each one.

Source: Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker, March 2026

The ongoing acceleration in the healthcare cost trend has created an imperative for employers. Targete benefits, performance measurement and alternative medical plans are all on the table.

Source: Mercer 2026 National Survey

Health insurance premiums continue rising faster than wages, with 67% of covered workers now enrolled in self-funded plans. Read the full survey for more findings on the evolving U.S. health system.

Source: KFF 27th annual Employer Health Benefits Survey. October 2025

GLP-1s remain the primary driver of the pharmacy trend—and the category continues to expand. Read this latest study for information that can help improve plan design, benefit and coverage decisions.

Source: Aon GLP-1 research update (Jan 13, 2026)

Total costs up 7.9%. Pharmacy costs up 14.8%. For the first time in the Index’s history, AI-enabled billing optimization was identified as a cost driver.

Source: Milliman Medical Index (May 20, 2026)

PWC’s annual survey of health plan actuaries uncovered the top 5 ‘inflators’ of health insurance costs. Importantly, inflators are structural, and deflators are limited, and there is no more margin for passive management.

Source: PwC, Medical Cost Trend: Behind the Numbers 2027 (June 2026)

The urgency for employers to take charge of their health benefits and purchasing is growing. Employers have much to gain from being a proactive rather than a sleeping giant of health care affordability.

Source: New England Journal of Medicine, May14/21, 2026.

A survey from Business Group on Healthfound nearly 80% of employers said GLP-1 drugs are a primary factor driving up premiums for employer-sponsored health benefits.

Source: Business Group on Health, 2026 Employer Well-being Strategy Survey

Increasingly, younger people are using AI to prepare for a doctor's visit and understand test results and diagnoses. This research report uncovers important trends and perspectives that may be impacting health benefits costs.

Source: Zocdoc, 2026 survey report; The AI-Informed Patient

Americans spend more on healthcare than anyone else in the world. A big reason is the high prices Americans pay for surgeries and drugs.

Source: Wall St. Journal article, Why the U.S. Spends So Much on Healthcare, April 6, 2026.

Regulatory pressure on pharmacy benefit managers continues to build, with enforcement actions and new disclosure requirements pushing greater visibility into pricing and rebate structures. This is beginning to give employers more leverage in managing pharmacy spend.

Source: Federal Trade Commission Matter/File Number: 2210114. Docket # 9437

Employers are increasingly exploring direct contracting, centers of excellence, and alternative network models to improve outcomes and control costs. At the same time, these approaches introduce new compliance, data-sharing, and operational challenges.

Source: Frier Levitt, DTE Healthcare Models: Structures, Regulatory Considerations, and Implementation Guidance for Plan Sponsors. March 2026

Legal scrutiny is expanding beyond retirement plans into health benefits. Employers are increasingly expected to demonstrate that their vendor decisions and cost structures are prudent and aligned with participant interests.

Source: Reuters. JPMorgan Chase employees may sue over high drug costs and premiums, judge rules. March 2026

This presentation was delivered at a recent Employee Health Care Conference. It provides an excellent update on top federal policy issues and the environment impacting price transparency, prescription drug costs, and medicare reimbursement.

Source: Presentation given by Katy Johnson, President, American Benefits Council. March 2026

While sensationalized, we validated that this article by Hunterbrook Media accurately describes the flow of money that drug manufacturers pay in discounts, rebates, and fees to pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).

Source: Hunterbrook Media, January 2026

This news story highlights the latest ERISA lawsuit charging national employers and consultants with breach of fiduciary duty, as relating to employee benefits.

Source: National Association of Plan Advisors, December 2025.

Big employers who’ve tried to insulate workers from rising health costs are preparing to share the pain in the form of higher premiums. Read this article to learn more.

Source: AXIOS, August 2025

Read this article that examines the world of employer healthcare decision-making, performance optimization strategies that actually move the needle, and the ethical minefield of having your paycheck and your healthcare controlled by your employer.

Source: Healthcare Markets & Technology, September 2025.